Chapter 25: The Green Necklace

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【Congratulations, you have completed the Rare-grade instance "Green Scrapyard" (Elite Level ★★). You have been awarded: Character EXP +180,000, and an additional reward: "Green Necklace" (Quality: Green)!】

……

With a chime in my ears, the final instance rewards were officially granted!

Beneath my feet, the corpse of the Goblin Scavenger slowly transformed into rays of white light and dissipated. At the same time, with a soft "clatter," a necklace dropped into my interdimensional storage space.

In the setting of "Star Abyss," player equipment is divided into 11 slots: weapon, off-hand weapon, helmet, chest armor, arm guards (gauntlets), leg guards, shoes, cloak, necklace, and rings. There are two slots for rings, and according to the game’s mechanics, rings and necklaces are the only two pieces of equipment that can roll a critical hit attribute!

Furthermore, rings, necklaces, and weapons are the only three types of equipment that have a chance to possess a life-steal effect. In short, critical hit and life-steal are two top-tier attributes that are extremely rare to encounter.

Especially in the early stages of the game, having a life-steal attribute would significantly increase a player's leveling efficiency. After all, most players haven't even seen a healing item yet, which poses a severe limitation for melee-class players.

Thinking of this, I reached into my interdimensional storage space and carefully took out the Green Necklace. The necklace was fashioned from a rather coarse string, and the pendant was a jade-green ring-shaped charm that looked quite exquisite, emitting a faint luster.

After my gaze lingered for a moment, the necklace's attributes appeared—

【Green Necklace】 (Quality: Green)
Grade: Tier 1
Spirit: +10
Blessing: Critical Hit +1%
Required Spirit: 35
……

"..."

Looking at the attributes of the Green Necklace, I was rendered speechless for a moment. It was actually a Spirit-boosting necklace, clearly gear for a Spirit Speaker. However, the 1% critical hit rate was still a little helpful to me.

If it were an ordinary Super Warrior, they would have to trade it away after obtaining it, as it would be impossible for them to equip it.

But I am different. The SS-grade Origin Power Furnace adds so many stats, and combined with the 6 points of Spirit gained after leveling Basic Programming to Lv 10, I have more than enough to equip this Green Necklace!

No debate needed—Spirit is essentially magic resistance. I equipped it; besides, I don't have a suitable necklace for myself at the moment anyway.

With a "clink," the Green Necklace hung around my neck, giving me a bit of the feel of an ancient martial artist. I then poured the EXP gained from this instance into my level, surging from Level 16 to Level 18. As for the Origin Power Furnace, it had also risen to Level 15. I allocated all free attribute points into Strength, and my character panel underwent another massive change!

【Zhui Ying】 (Starry Sky Super Warrior · Sword Specialty · Tier 1)
Level: 18
Attack: 90-200
Defense: 78
Health: 6,800
Critical Hit: 1%
Charm: 0
Origin Power: 100/100
Comprehensive Combat Power: 380
Potential Point Allocation: Strength 168 / Agility 85.5 / Spirit 59.5 / Constitution 45
Achievements: 3
……

After one instance run, my comprehensive combat power soared to 380 points. At this stage, it is highly likely that I am ranked number one in Creek City. Unfortunately, the regional leaderboard is ranked by level, and with my current level, I cannot reach the top.

That doesn't matter; staying low-key is not a bad thing!

Afterward, I checked my remaining ammunition.

"Huff..."

I sighed, wishing I could pull a pack of Golden Qun cigarettes from my pocket and light one up. The Green Scrapyard instance consumed a huge amount of supplies. I only had a few hundred bullets left for the Roaring Beast, and I didn't get any gear worth selling this time, so the cost of ammunition for my next leveling outing was becoming a headache.

Exiting the instance.

"Swish~~~"

My body sank slightly, and I jumped silently from the canal railing. By now, night had fallen over Creek City, so no one saw me appearing out of thin air. Just then, my stomach let out a "gurgle," and a wave of hunger washed over me.

Fine, time to head to the internet cafe for a meal.

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At night, I swaggered into the internet cafe.

"Ding Han."

Yingzi looked up at me: "Covered in dust—where have you been messing around?"

"Not messing around, just a poor soul struggling for a living."

"Sigh, me too."

She gave me a look of shared misery.

I immediately walked behind the counter, grabbed a cup of instant noodles, snuck in two sausages, and poured in some boiling water.

"The boss is here, you’re really bold..."

Yingzi paused her dance steps in *Audition Online* and glanced at me: "You should add sausages on the sly. Don't you know our boss is especially stingy?"

"Got it, just don't say anything."

I crossed my arms and waited for the noodles to be ready.

"Ding Han."

Just then, Lu Xiaobei appeared outside the counter, craned her neck to look at the noodles on the table, and laughed: "Eating just that?"

"What else?"

I said speechlessly: "The ruthless capitalist hasn't paid me a single cent of wages so far. If I don't eat this, what else can I eat?"

"How pitiful."

Lu Xiaobei tutted, but showed no sign of paying me: "By the way, I have an announcement."

"Oh, what is it?" Yingzi immediately looked up.

"Tomorrow night at six, our Feiyang Internet Cafe will have its annual year-end team-building hotpot dinner. You all must be there. I’ve hired a temporary manager from another cafe to cover, and the four of us will go out."

"Sounds great!"

Yingzi was excited: "I've never been to an annual party in my life. This time, I’ll finally get to see what it's like."

I curled my lip. What kind of experience could an annual dinner at a tiny internet cafe possibly offer?

However, the chance to have a good meal is certainly a good thing.

……

And so, I spent the whole day looking forward to it.

The next day, when night fell, Lu Xiaobei returned in a rush and laughed: "Employees, let's go eat! Spicy hotpot!"

"Let's go!"

After handing the cafe over to a scruffy-looking guy with glasses, the four of us headed out.

Soon, we arrived at a hotpot restaurant not far from the cafe. At a four-person table, Zhao Yihang and I sat on one side, while Lu Xiaobei and Yingzi sat on the other. The hotpot was already bubbling, and a spicy, fragrant aroma filled the air. Lu Xiaobei ordered a case of beer, opened half of it, and placed a few bottles in front of each person.

"Cheers."

As the boss, Lu Xiaobei raised her glass first and gave a year-end summary: "Over this past year, while the internet cafe industry is just emerging, our Feiyang Internet Cafe's business has gradually improved. This is everyone's credit; it is the result of us weathering the storm together and sharing honor and disgrace."

I have to say, she actually sounds like a qualified capitalist. At least these words were quite inspiring.

"I have a low tolerance for alcohol, I can't drink much," I coughed, reminding her.

"Then just drink a little." Lu Xiaobei glanced at me.

"Fine."

I only poured half a glass.

"Cheers!"

Everyone clinked their glasses lightly and downed them in one go, then started devouring the meat like crazy.

Halfway through the meal, Lu Xiaobei smiled again and said: "Next, I would like to announce the list of outstanding employees for this year. Everyone, listen closely."

Suddenly, three pairs of ears pricked up!

"The outstanding employee of Feiyang Internet Cafe for this year is..."

Lu Xiaobei dragged out the suspense, then pointed a finger at me: "Ding Han!"

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Yingzi and Zhao Yihang immediately wilted.

"Over this past period, Ding Han has not only assembled quite a few new computers for the cafe, but he also reinstalled the systems, pioneered our membership program, and offered me a lot of advice. The high traffic at Feiyang Internet Cafe recently is inseparable from Ding Han's contributions."

Yingzi laughed and raised her glass: "Ding Han, I knew the annual outstanding employee would definitely be you, our 'dog-headed strategist.' Come, let's celebrate with this drink!"

"Right, let's go!"

Zhao Yihang chimed in with a laugh: "You definitely have to down this glass in one go!"

And so, with a glass of beer down my throat, I felt my face starting to go numb again.

Low alcohol tolerance, what a curse!

"Boss, is there any reward for the annual outstanding employee?" Zhao Yihang asked.

"No."

Lu Xiaobei said: "It's just a verbal title to encourage the employee to keep up the good work."

"Oh my..."

Yingzi and Zhao Yihang sighed in relief: "That feels better!"

"Damn it..."

I was speechless and said: "How about... you reconsider my staff dormitory issue? Sleeping on the chairs at the cafe is not a long-term solution; my body can't take it anymore."

"Let me think about it..."

Lu Xiaobei fell into deep thought. She thought for the entire night, and in the end, there was no result.

……

Late at night, everyone returned to the internet cafe. Yingzi was picked up by her boyfriend, and Zhao Yihang went back to school. I was the only one left to work the night shift.

This night shift was exhausting. I couldn't fall asleep in my semi-drunk state, and I felt incredibly restless. By four in the morning, my eyes were glowing, and I ate two whole buckets of instant noodles.

By dawn, I was so sleepy I couldn't hold on anymore, and I actually fell asleep leaning against the wall.

"Ding Han, Ding Han?"

A while later, someone shook my shoulder.

It was Old K.

"Hasn't that ruthless capitalist Lu Xiaobei solved your sleeping problem yet?"

"Not yet," I said helplessly: "It’s miserable..."

"Yeah, I've felt that way too. A single penny can defeat a hero."

Old K looked sympathetic: "How about... come squeeze in at my place? The bed in my room is 1.8 meters wide. We can have one quilt each and fit just fine. Just make do for a night; at least you'll get a good sleep. If you keep pushing yourself like this, you'll really ruin your health."

"Alright then..."

I nodded.

Soon after, Yingzi arrived looking refreshed and quickly finished the shift handover.

I then followed Old K to his living quarters.

Old K lived in an old residential area with rows of dilapidated four-to-five-story apartment buildings connected together. The room was reasonably spacious, though the smell of instant noodles was a bit unbearable.

"My place isn't big, just make do," he said with a faint smile.

"I've reached this point, what more is there to be picky about?"

"That's good."

He sat down and started taking off his shoes. The moment Old K took off his shoes, my expression changed drastically.

"Fuck!"

I instantly entered a state of near-suffocation. Old K's feet were truly god-tier—comparable to the national football team's!